


Put your head on my shoulder, whisper in my ear

by orphan_account



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: F/M, Gen, They deserved better, i love them, tendrew - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-30
Updated: 2019-03-30
Packaged: 2019-12-26 23:23:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,096
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18292283
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Andrew came back from Vietnam, Jane was never taken by Brenner. As it should have been. They deserved better.





	Put your head on my shoulder, whisper in my ear

**Author's Note:**

> _Put your head on my shoulder_   
>  _Whisper in my ear, baby_   
>  _Words I want to hear_   
>  _Tell me, tell me that you love me too_

One thing that Andrew Rich wasn't expecting, was to come back from Vietnam alive.

But he did.

He was coming back home to his girlfriend and to his family, well and with all of his limbs. He was a lucky one, too lucky to be honest. Although there was a reason he was going back, and the reason was called Jim Hopper. If there wasn't Jim, Andrew would be one of the corpses in the Shau Valley.

Everything that followed then was a blur for him. 

He just remembered his old house, and his mother hugging him so tight he couldn't catch a breath. And after two painful months in there, he just felt numb. He fell into her arms with tears as he thought he'd never see her again. Then his father, who had never shown any emotion of vulnerability, hugged the two of them and burst into sobs right in front of their whole neighborhood.

As much as Andrew wanted to feel at home, there was someone missing.

Where was Terry?

The first person to visit him after returning from Vietnam was Ken. Ken had never seen Andrew in the state of being a complete wastoid. He sat on the bed of his old room, hugging his legs as he was staring at the ground. It was unlike any of Andrew's moods he had ever seen. Ken knocked on the door gently. He could see glimpses of future - and as far as he trusted himself, he could see Andrew happy again. That happy, always optimistic person that existed before Vietnam, needed a rest.

He just needed to recover for a while. After all, they all had to. The two months without Andrew were a rollercoaster for them all. Yet, they could rest. War or a bad man, it was the same. Although, the bad man was dead. Brenner was dead for three weeks now, buried six feet under the ground.

It gave them peace, somehow. Especially to Terry. She could now hold her baby Jane as long as she wanted, she could now be sure that her baby wouldn't get taken from her. She was now sure that their family would be complete. Ken was there to take Andrew to Terry.

Andrew's family hadn't told him about baby Jane yet. They themselves had a hard time believing that they have a grandchild. But after seeing the little baby with the brown piercing eyes and ears of her father's, they couldn't stop themselves from loving her. Especially Andrew's mom, Mrs. Rich, never believed that her son would have kids. He'd always been reckless, stupidly brave, and resistant, just somehow, the thought of Andrew with his kids couldn't work out.

She was wrong, though. Mrs. Rich could see it on her own eyes when Terry ran into Andrew's arms, hugging him tightly as she promised him they wouldn't get separated again. And when he finally realized that it was his girlfriend, the love of his life in his arms, he released the breath he was holding.

Andrew's family watched them kissing with emotion. Both lovers had tears slipping from underneath their closed eyes. Andrew and Terry had never been that kind of couple to cry and whisper how much they love each other. But exactly that was happening.

"I love you, I love you, I love you," Terry repeated quietly, whispering into his ear as she couldn't bring herself to let him go. After he returned to her, she would never let him go now. The two months he had been gone were the worst days of her life, and at the same time, holding her daughter was the best day of her life.

The two of them were so lost in their own world that Andrew hadn't noticed Becky standing in the hallway. She held baby Jane in her arms. Her eyes went wide as she gaped at the new person in front of her, opening her toothless mouth in pure, innocent curiosity. Mrs. Rich was standing right next to Becky, caressing her finger over Jane's little soft cheek.

Baby Jane's eyes widened at the sight of her grandmother. Mrs. Rich grinned back, making a funny face. There was a baby-ish quiet giggle coming out of her mouth that broke her parents' bubble.

Andrew blinked in confusion at Becky and his mom. He stopped breathing for a moment, his mind wasn't able to comprehend the information. His eyes widened, in the exact same way as baby Jane's as they stared at each other.

"Is she..." his whisper vanished in the air.

Terry smiled, nodding. "Yours. She's your daughter."

She took his hand. She led him closer to their daughter, making sure he wanted to meet her. Baby Jane fisted her right hand with no control. She recognized her mama and cried a little at the sight of her. "I'm here, baby," Terry rocked her gently from side to side.

"This is our baby Jane."

Andrew stood next to her, completely frozen. His girlfriend beamed as she showed Jane her father. Andrew blinked in disbelief, - he was slowly getting emotional again -and caressed the baby's head with his thumb. "Hi little one," he whispered quietly. There were so many words, so many feelings on his tongue, but he couldn't bring himself to say anything else.

"Do you want to cradle her?"

He nodded, even though it was with hesitation. In the twenty years of his life, he had never held a baby in his arms. But Terry was guiding him, making sure he would carry her the right way. Holding his baby made his eyes fill with tears. He chuckled, and a smile formed on his face. "Hello, baby Jane. I'm your dad."

Terry leaned her head against his shoulder, kissing it. She watched and listened to how Andrew whispered to their daughter, and she was so proud of him. He fell in love with baby Jane as fast as every other person. He still couldn't believe it, yet she was here. The perfect combination of his and Terry's love for each other.

One tear slowly dropped out of Andrew's eye. Terry wiped it away as she pressed a gentle kiss against his neck, snuggling closer.

"I love you."

They were complete now. Nobody was there to ruin their lives anymore, no war was there to take Andrew from them. There was no evil scientist that wanted to mark their daughter as his own. There were no monsters from the Beneath. And if something would come again, they would fight, because that was what families do.


End file.
